Amnesty International (AI) on Thursday submitted a briefing to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women detailing the failure of the Mexican government to protect women from torture, killings, sexual violence and other ill-treatment. On July 17 the UN Committee is expected to examine its combined seventh and …

The Supreme Court of Canada on Thursday ruled that a tariff imposed on Internet Service Providers (ISPs) that allow media downloads is a violation of the technological neutrality. The court held that in passing the Copyright Act the Parliament did not intend to treat online retailers of digital media differently than stores that sell physical …

An Indonesian court on Thursday sentenced a Shia cleric to two years in prison on blasphemy charges. Chief Judge Purnomo Amin Tjahjo of the Sampang district court announced the sentence of Tajul Muluk, whose teachings were deemed to have deviated from mainstream Islam resulting in "public anxiety" over Muluk's pronouncements. According to court witnesses Muluk specifically taught …

Soviet-produced unexploded submunitions and a bomb canister were discovered in Jabel Shahshabu, a mountainous area near Hama in Syria and posted to YouTube, Human Rights Watch said Thursday. HRW confirmed the site of discovery by an activist who knows the YouTube poster. Syria is not known to have used cluster munitions in the …

The government of Mali plans to ask the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate attacks in its northern region, including the destruction of ancient religious shrines, according to its Justice Ministry. Justice Minister Malick Coulibaly said in an interview that the government would ask the ICC to investigate the attacks, which allegedly resulted …

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay on Thursday urged the government of Kazakhstan to allow an independent international investigation into the unrest last December that resulted in at least 15 deaths and hundreds of injuries. The violence occurred in a remote desert oil town of …

A judge for the US District Court for the Southern District of New York (SDNY) on Wednesday rejected a motion by Bank of America (BOA) to dismiss a shareholder lawsuit alleging BOA's purposeful concealment of the bank's exposure to billions of dollars in loan repurchase claims and its problematic reliance on an electronic loan registry. …

Three UN experts on Thursday urged the Russian State Duma not to adopt a controversial bill that will regulate the activities of non-commercial organizations (NCOs) that engage in political activity and receive foreign funding. The special rapporteurs on freedom of association, human rights defenders and freedom of expression expressed particular concern that …

A Ukrainian appeals court on Thursday postponed the appeal hearing for former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko, making this the third postponement in the former prime minister's appeal of her seven-year prison sentence. The case was last postponed in June. The hearing to consider Tymoshenko's appeal of her conviction on corruption charges [JURIST …

Torture, beatings and ill-treatment of detainees are common practice in Tajikistan, Amnesty International said in its report released on Thursday. The human rights group claimed that the country lacks measures adequately protecting detainees from abuses and ill-treatment and noted that there are more incentives than deterrence for police officers to engage in such …

The Supreme Court of Estonia ruled Thursday that the treaty to establish the euro area's permanent rescue fund does not offend the Estonian constitution. The court, sitting en banc, held that a restriction on the financial authority on the Riigikogu, Estonia's parliament, imposed by the Treaty Establishing the European Stability Mechanism (ESM Treaty) …

A draft Iraqi cybercrime law would violate the international standards protecting due process, freedom of speech and freedom of association, Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported Thursday. The Information Crimes Law, which had its first reading before the Iraqi Council of Representatives in July of last year, regulates the use of information …

The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) on Thursday postponed the trial of former Bosnian Serb Army commander Ratko Mladic due to his health problems. Thursday's trial came to an abrupt end when Mladic complained that he did not feel well. The court stopped the hearing, and the …

Newly elected Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi on Wednesday issued a statement saying he will respect the ruling of an Egyptian court suspending his decree to reconvene the parliament. Morsi said his order was not intended to challenge the authority of the court or the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), but rather to avoid …

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari on Thursday signed the Contempt of Court Bill 2012, which would shield senior officials from contempt of court proceedings. The bill was approved by both the lower and upper house of the national parliament on Monday and Wednesday, respectively. The new law is seen as an attempt to …

A judge for the US District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi on Wednesday extended his prior injunction blocking a controversial Mississippi abortion law that was scheduled to go into effect July 1. The judge issued the initial temporary injunction earlier this month. The judge plans to rule on whether to …